American Horror Story: Freak Show Teaser Poster and Cast

September 02, 2014

American Horror Story: Freak Show begins its tale in the quiet, sleepy hamlet of Jupiter, Florida. The year is 1952. A troupe of curiosities has just arrived in town, coinciding with the strange emergence of a dark entity that savagely threatens the lives of townsfolk and freaks alike. This is the story of the performers and their desperate journey of survival amidst the dying world of the American carny experience.

American Horror Story: Freak Show will see many of the same cast and crew of American Horror Story: Coven heading to 1950s Florida. Creator Ryan Murphy explains: “It feels like a Douglas Sirk movie; it’s very 1952 presentational and then the horror is an unexpected jab. As opposed to last year, which was crazy camera work and comedy. This year feels different.”

It may feel different, but Murphy emphasizes that there will be tropes and tie-ins with American Horror Story's earlier seasons:

"At every freak show, you have the tropes but there’s some [that are] unique and weird. It’s about something: It’s about outcasts and how society at that time…true stories about circus performers who were cast aside. The story in many ways dovetails with Asylum, because they leave one era and you can see many of them in real life were put into asylums. There’s a great symmetry we’ve come up with that’s rewarding."

Notably: #WirSindAlleFreaks translates to “we are all freaks.”

SlashFilm breaks down American Horror Story: Freak Show's poster:

Working from top to bottom and left to right, we have Sarah Paulson as Bette and Dot Tattler, Denis O’Hare in an unnamed role, Kathy Bates as bearded lady Effil Darling, Angela Basset three-breasted woman Desiree Dupree, Frances Conroy in another unnamed role, Michael Chiklis as strongman Wendell Del Toredo, Jessica Lange as freak show manager Elsa Mars, and Evan Peters as Effil’s son Jimmy.

American Horror Story: Freak Show rolls into town Wednesday, October 8th at 10PM on FX. Other stars include Emma Roberts, Gabourey Sidibe, Wes Bentley, John Carroll Lynch, Finn Wittrock, Jyoti Amge. Patti LaBelle and Matt Bomer are expected to guest star.

We’ve made some pretty cool watches and some pretty sweet shirts, and we’ve gotten a lot of requests to see that artwork on other things. So today we’re excited to announce that we’re going to start releasing limited edition skateboard decks! They’ll have the same attention to detail as all Vannen products, and you can definitely expect surprises and bonus goodies with each release.